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The State of the Medical Marijuana Market

by | Sep 8, 2016 1:08 pm | Pharmaceuticals

In the 1960s and 70s, pot smokers were warned that marijuana could cause schizophrenia, among other mental disorders. Today, it’s lawmakers and government officials who exhibit symptoms of that condition. On August 11, 2016, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced that it would allow more research into marijuana, and would expand the number of sites that can grow cannabis for research. At the same time, the agency rejected requests from several sectors, including The Epilepsy Foundation, that it relax the classification of cannabis from Schedule 1, as a dangerous, highly addictive drug with no medical use. Bummer, man. Today, 25 states have a medical or recreational cannabis... Read More »

Radiopharmacies Now on Dealmakers’ Radar

by | Sep 7, 2016 8:50 am | Other Services, Private Equity

You can’t get much more “specialty” in the specialty pharmacy business than to deal in radiopharmaceuticals. Two recent deals, announced in August, show this area is heating up. IBA Molecular, a global maker and distributor of radiopharmaceutical products, agreed to pay approximately $613 million for Mallinckrodt’s (NYSE: MNK) nuclear imaging business, including a portfolio of diagnostic imaging products. The U.S. market accounts for approximately two thirds of the division’s current annual revenues. For Mallinckrodt, the sale continues its strategic portfolio transformation, as the company evolves to handle specialty pharmaceuticals that don’t glow. IBA... Read More »

Third Quarter 2016 Shows Signs of Slowing

by | Sep 6, 2016 4:18 pm | Managed Care, Pharmaceuticals, Private Equity

Eight months into the year is a good time to take stock of the state of the healthcare M&A market. On the whole, volume and value look to be stronger than last year. The first eight months of 2016 show a combined total of 1,019 transactions, compared with 1,005 in the same period in 2015, a 1% difference. Five of the first eight months in 2016 have posted higher transaction totals than the same months in 2015. Deal values have to be examined more closely, owing to the mega-deals that can create huge month-to-month fluctuations. Total dollars spent in the first eight months of 2016 are approximately $196 billion. In the same period in 2015, spending reached nearly $338 billion, thanks... Read More »

Henry Schein Picks up Another Dental Distribution Service

by | Sep 1, 2016 8:17 pm | Other Services

In late August 2016, Henry Schein, Inc. (NASDAQ: HSIC) announced its seventh dental acquisition since 2014. The acquisition of Marrodent gave the global dental products giant a presence in Poland, where Marrodent distributes dental equipment and dental laboratory supplies. With this addition, Henry Schein’s dental business now has operations or affiliates in 27 countries. In 2014, Henry Schein purchased five European dental companies from Arseus NV (EBR: RCUS), as well as New Jersey-based Lincoln Dental Supply, a supplier of dental products and equipment, and France-based Sirona Direct, the dental distribution business of Sirona Dental Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRO). In 2015, the... Read More »

Big Pharma Pays Big for Biotech Pipelines

by | Sep 1, 2016 6:43 pm | Biotechnology, Pharmaceuticals

The pharmaceutical industry has largely given up on in-house research and development, saying that the R&D timeline is too costly, long and uncertain to fund with shareholders’ money. The industry has gone from bolt-on acquisitions of smaller companies with marketed products to battling it out for clinical-stage drug candidates. What’s surprised some industry observers is that these acquirers are now targeting early-stage and even pre-clinical drug candidates, to boost their own production pipelines, but as a way to stymie the competition, too. Pharmaceutical mergers and acquisitions hit a peak in 2014, with 188 deals (up 25% year-over-year) and $213.3 billion in spending (up 220%... Read More »

Microbot Medical Merges with StemCells

by | Aug 30, 2016 6:01 pm | Biotechnology, Medical Devices

Microbot Medical Ltd., an Israel-based medical device company that specializes in the research, design, development and commercialization of micro-robotics-assisted medical technologies, has merged with StemCells Inc. (NASDAQ: STEM), a biotech firm that engages in the research, development, and commercialization of stem cell-based therapeutics for the treatment of central nervous system diseases. For StemCells, this merger is a strategic alternative to its failed Phase 2 clinical study of human neural stem cells in chronic spinal cord injuries. The combined company will pursue the development of robotics-based medical devices for the treatment of cerebrospinal fluid and gastrointestinal... Read More »

Busy Day for Bacterial Infection Drugs

by | Aug 26, 2016 8:40 am | Biotechnology, Pharmaceuticals

On August 23rd, two separate deals occurred involving licenses to drug candidates for the treatment of serious infections. Productos Científicos S.A. de C.V. (PC), a leading privately-held Mexican pharmaceutical company, purchased a license to Taigexyn® in Latin America from privately-held TaiGen Biotechnology Company Limited. Taigexyn® (nemonoxacin) is a novel antibiotic for the treatment of bacterial infections, including those caused by drug resistant bacteria, which has proven its efficacy in Phase I, II and III clinical studies. According to IMS Health, Latin-America’s pharmaceutical market is projected to grow 9-12% from 2016-2020, faster than the projected 3-6% in more developed... Read More »

BioClinica Changes Hands as CRO Market Heats Up

by | Aug 25, 2016 8:25 am | Other Services, Private Equity

The market for contract research organizations (CROs) is hot in 2016. Fourteen deals have been announced so far this year, compared with five in all of 2015, 11 in 2014 and eight in 2013. The latest deal was announced on August 22, as JLL Partners and Water Street Healthcare Partners exited their investment in BioClinica, Inc. and the UK-based private equity firm Cinven stepped in, for an undisclosed price. The original investment for the global clinical trial management company, then trading under the NASDAQ ticker symbol BIOC, was announced on January 30, 2013, for $123 million (1.6x revenue and 11.8x EBITDA). That deal included the acquisition of medical imaging company CoreLab... Read More »